The Manaiakalani Programme has gained national and international credibility as an innovative approach to ensuring the foundation requirements of schooling are being met whilst offering young people the opportunity to learn in an environment which recognises the special character of our children as digital citizens whose world is very different from their teachers at the same age.

Over the ten years of the Manaiakalani Innovative Teacher programme we have had teachers who have taken this opportunity to investigate ways to accelerate learning outcomes for our young people via the Manaiakalani pedagogy. The most successful projects have subsequently become the foundation of classroom implementation for their colleagues within Manaiakalani and around New Zealand.  The Manaiakalani Education Trust actively supports teachers who are challenging their own teaching practice through inquiring into innovative ways to meet our cluster goals and provide inspiration to their colleagues. This is a collaborative process using Design Thinking principles to guide us. To quote Michael Fullan 2/11/16, we are looking for "purposeful, focused and disciplined innovation".